1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an open/close mechanism of a portable terminal
2. Background of the Invention
Portable terminals can be easily carried and have one or more of functions such as supporting voice calls and telephony calls, inputting and/or outputting information, storing data and the like.
As portable terminals become multifunctional, they can be configured to capture still images or moving images, play music or video files, play games, receive broadcasts and the like, so as to be an integrated multimedia player.
The portable terminal requires hardware and software configuration to implement various functions and support operations of the components. For example, developing a user interface environment allowing a user to use the portable terminal more easily and conveniently have been actively pursued.
As the portable terminal is considered to be part of a person's personal belongings, a variety of form factors are provided to facilitate a selection of a portable terminal according to a user's individuality. The portable terminals are typically configured in many different types, including a bar type portable terminal having an input/output unit and a display disposed in one body, a folder or swing type portable terminal having one body rotatable with respect to another body to be open or closed, and a slide type portable terminal having one body slidable with respect to another body to be open or closed, and the like.
Among others, the slide type portable terminal is preferred due to its simple opening operation, a facilitation of recognition because a display is always exposed directly to the outside of the portable terminal, and the like. However, when one body is slid with respect to another body in the slide type portable terminal, a step may be formed therebetween, which may be considered to spoil an outer appearance of the portable terminal.